The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1887-07-15
.ty Masked Men Hang the Wife
Murderer from an Oak Tree In
the Cs,urt House Yard.

SALEM, July T-Kelty, the Polk coun-
ty wife murderer, was taken out of Jail
at Dallas last night and lynched by
gang of forty or fifty mashed
men.
From e. c. Shaw, driver of the Dali
las stnge between Salem and that place,
the following particulars were obtain
ed: Over week ago Sheriff Groves,
who had kept strong guard over Kelly
in the Jail at Dallas, thought all dam
ger of lynehing was past and reduced
the guard to one man, whose name is
Harry Depew. Everything had been
exceeding quiet as regards the Kelly
murder ever since, and apprehension
on the part of the prisoner and the
people had been allayed.
Tins morning at o'clock two wag-
ons and two hacks loaded with men,
and number on horseback, about fifty
persons in all, drove up quietly into
Dallas and went straight to the Jail.
They were seen to arrive by parties ut
the hotel. They seemed prepared for
( business and made no delay. The
/ guard was in tie cell with the prisoner
when the mob arrived, and reports him
rs having become greatly excited.
/ The lynchers began battering Down
( the outside door, and Kelly, who un-
derstood what was coming, begged the
guard to give him knife to kill him
4 self. On The guard refusing to do so,
I Kelly seized q lamp, broke it and be-
gan cutting his throat and neck with
/ the fragments of glass. He succeeded in
making several terrible gashes, from
which the blood ran in streams. The
men went quietly on with their work
breaking through the first door, then
the second into the cell where they
I found Kelly in terrible state, and very
weak from tho loss of blood. They
asked him for statement, but Depew
who was forced to stay in the Jail, could
not hear what lie said. The guard was
helpless in the hands of company of
well armed and determined men and
offered no resistance.
Kelly was taken across the street to
the north of the Jail and into the court
house yard, where there are several
large oak trees. Over limb of one {.
rope was thrown and the other end was
placed around Kelty's neck; few
stauneh pulls by strong-armed men
and Kelly was suspended in the air.
All this was watched by Harry Cos
per from his residenze outside the court
yard. Having ae5onp plished their pur-
pose the lynehers retired ana very lit
tie was known of the affair in Dallas
until daylight this morning.
When the tragic news was told, the
town was in blaze with .axciteinent,
but the unanimous verdict was that
this VAS fit ending to the fearful af-
i fair
( At daylight this morning Kelty's
body was cut down and taken charge
Of by the proper authorities. With the
exception of the cuts about the neck,
/ the corpse looked very natural indeed.
The inquest had not been held up to
{ the time of the leaving of the stage.
I Kelly had almost recovered from his
wound and was looking and feeling
hopes of being cleared. He was to
have had preliminary examination in
the near future.
{ 1t IS believed the lynching party
came from the neighborhood of Perry
dale and Mccoy, where the murder was
committed by Kelly. a number were
masked, others not. 1t il understood
that there was plan on foot by the ofii-
GERS to move the prisoner TO Salem for
safe keeping, and il is believed that the
lynehers had heard OF it, and resolved
to save trouble and expense by sum-
mary dealings.
IL is not known as yet what course
will be pursued by the authorities. but
in all probability an effort will be made
to acertain the leaders of the party and
bring them 10 trial.